Review: Bar Bombón in Philadelphia

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Last month I was in Philly and was keen to visit a vegan Puerto Rican/Latin-inspired restaurant that opened last year called Bar Bombón. A browse of the menu sounded promising so I headed downtown together with my brother, sister-in-law and two nieces.

We had a hard time picking from the menu so quickly did the most sensible thing and ordered pretty much everything available. There was five of us and we were hungry. Don’t judge! Here’s a breakdown of what we had:

Salsa Roja, Salsa Verde y Guacamole with fried corn tortillas.

Yucca Frita with Maduro sauce

Empanadas de chick’n and beef

Tequila Seitan Skewers

Enchiladas de ‘pollo’

Brussels Sprout Tacos with fried avocado

Broccoli Tacos

Cubano Club Sandwich

Anjou Pear & Squash Gallette

Tres Leches Cake

Xocolatl rice pudding

I wish I could say that everything was delicious but we all left feeling slightly underwhelmed with the food. There were some standout items (the fried yuca, Cubano club sandwich and the incredible Tres Leches cake) but everything else seemed to be somewhat lacking in flavour and composition. I hate to be too critical because I’m sure that much time and love has gone into creating these dishes but I really didn’t feel like my expectations were met at Bar Bombón.

Add to that the Center City Philly prices, and I don’t think any of us would head back there in a hurry.